Spark plug cleaner



Filed Dec. 7, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet l 49 57 56 52 4 4a b +4 41- 5 I 1 I 5 I i 1 I 6' 5 I 5 :59 1 2 56 55 i I 55 M ii! 75 I i 560, l /5211 I E \75 L4--- 62 INVENTOR5 M 55 Franklin p 71 Rmwwndfltlllcn 44 "1 46 44am; hfloke July 21, F F AKE ETAL SPARK PLUG CLEANER ATTORNEYS July 21, 1942. F. F. AKE ETAL 2,290,629

SPARK PLUG CLEANER I Filed Dec. '7, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOIIR'S 54 Frank):

5.??? 4 Mum 111mm 2;; 77 BY "mm; may;

ATTORNEYS Patented July 21, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE a! 2,290,029 7 l 3 ,1 l.- sranxrmacmanna' Frank I. like. and Raymond w. Allen, Akron, a Ohio, and Henry L. Hoke, Memphis, Tenn, signors to The Firestone Tire & Rubber Company, Akron, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application Decelnber 1, 1940, Serial Nb. 369,014

2 Claims. (01. SI-'8) hinged to the casing ID by a pin 25 which is This invention relatesto spark plug cleaners, especially toan improved, easily operated spark plug cleaner which cleans spark plugs by blowing abrasive particles thereagainst.

The present invention is an improvement to the spark plug cleaner described and claimed in Thomas A. Worsham application Serial No. 310,056, which issued as Patent No. 2,257,144 on September 30, 1941.

The general object of the present invention is to provide a long-lived, sturdily built spark plug cleaner which is composed of a minimum of easily assembled parts.

Another object of the invention is to provide a sturdy valve for a spark plug cleaner, which valve functions efliciently and has a long life.

The foregoing and other objects will be manifest as the specification proceeds. Attention is directed the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l is a longitudinal vertical section through a spark plug cleaner embodying the invention, said section being taken on the line I-l of Figure 2;

Figure 2 is a transverse vertical section taken on line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a section taken on line 3-3 of Fisure 1;

Figures 4 and 5 are detail horizontal sectional elevations taken on lines 4-4 and 5-5 of Figure 1; and

Figure 6 is an enlarged detail vertical sectional elevation taken on line 96 of Figure 2.

Referring in detail to the apparatus shown in the accompanying drawings, a casing I is shown for mounting component parts of the spark plug cleaner of the invention. The upper part of the casing It has a pair of oppositely inclined wall portions ll having openings i2 and 13 therein. The opening 13 is provided to mount a spark plug to be cleaned and a substantially cylindricalbafiie 14 having a beveled end l extending inside the casing I0 is mounted in the opening l3 through a flange It on the exterior end thereof. The flange I3 is seated on a complemental flange ll formed in the casing and screws I8 secure the bailie l4 to the casing III. A flexible rubber washer l9 having a central aperture 2| therein, is positioned over the flange l6 and a washer, or ring, 22 is placed over the edge of the rubber washer I9. The screws l9 extend through the rubber washer l9 and washer 22 to secure them to the casing i9, whereby a spark plug 23 can be positioned in the apparatus by journalled in a bracket 23 formed on thecasing adjacent the opening i2 therein. A feature of the invention is that the closure has a boss 21 formed on the surface thereof adjacent the rubber ring I9 when the closure is positioned thereover, which boss is adapted to extend into the hole 2| in the rubber and retain the closure over the opening l3.

An integrally cast valve unit 3| is positioned within the casing 10 to control the operation of the cleaner. The valve 31 includes a valve body 3la and parallel, integrally formed tubes 32 and 32a extending therethrough and upwardly therefrom. The tubes 32 and 32a terminate in reduced, externally threaded upper end portions 33 which extend into wells 34 formed integrally with the casing I9. Nuts 35 engage with the upper ends 33 of the valve tubes to suspend the valve 3| from the upper surface of the casing It. The reduced ends 33 of the tubes provide shoulders 36 which are beneath the wells 34 and combine with the nuts 35 to aid in clamping the valve 3| in position. Washers 360. may be positioned between the shoulders 36 and the lower end of the wells 34 while a brace 31 extends between the tubes 32 to'reinforc'e same.

An air supply line 38, furnishing compressed air for operating the cleaner, is engaged with the lower end of the valve 3| and this line connects to an upwardly extending cylindrical bore 39 formedin the valve body 3la, which in turn 'connects to two horizontal conduits 4| and42 formed in the valve body. The conduits 4i and 42 connect to bores 43 and 44 of the tubes'32 and 32a, which have enlarged end portions 45 and 46, respectively, formed therein. The bore 43 has a horizontally disposed L shaped conduit 41 extending therefrom to the center of the rear edge of the body portion 3la and it connects to a feeder conduit 48 formed in the valve body at the base of an enlarged diagonally upwardly extending cylindrical recess 49 formed in the upper part of the valve body Ma. The recess 49 is aligned with the hole 21' in the rubber washer I9 and a nozzle 5| is engaged with the outer end of the recess 49 to direct air flowing therefrom against the spark plug 23 positioned in the cleaner. -An aspirator tube 52 connects to the conduit 48 to increase the velocity of air flowing through the conduit 48 and to direct air into the nozzle 5|. A vertically extending recess 53 is formed in the valve body to connect the recess 49 to the lower end of the valve. Abrasive particles 54 are received in a hopper 55 secured to the lower portion of the casing II by screws 55 extending through a flange 51 formed on the upper edge of the hopper and abutted against a shoulder 55 formed on the casing. The flow of air through the aspirator tube 52 serves to draw abrasive particles through the conduit or recess 55 and blow such particles against the. inner end of the spark plug 25 to clean same. A rubber sleeve 52a is positioned around, and may be secured integrally to, the aspirator tube to protect it from abrasive action thereon by the particles 54 as they are drawn up through the conduit 53 and forced out of the nozzle whereby the aspirator tube has a longer life than regular metal tubes.

The air distributing conduit 42, connecting to air supply line 38, connects to the enlarged end 45 of the bore 44 to provide it with compressed air. A small upwardly extending conduit BI is formed in the valve body 3|a at the upper portion thereof, which conduit extends between the bore 44 and the edge of the valve body and connects to a nozzle 62 positioned in 'the valve body adjacent the nozzle 5|. The nozzle 62 and conduit ii are aligned with the inner end of the spark plug 23 and hence are adapted to direct air thereagainst, which air serves to clean any abrading particles, or other loose material, from the inner end of the spark plug.

The distribution of the air fed to the spark plug cleaner is controlled by push buttons 63 and 84 positioned on the outside of the casing l0 and connected to valve stems 65 and 56, respectively, which are mounted in bores 43 and 44, respectively. The specific construction of the control means is best shown in Figure 2, and such con-' struction is a feature of the present invention. Shoulders 51 and 68 are provided at the enlarged lower ends of the bores 43 and 44 and annular valve seats ID having lower surfaces a that taper downwardly from their outer to their inner edges are received on the shoulders. The valve seats I0 have radially spaced, inwardly extending positioning lugs 69 formed thereon, which engage with the valve stems 65 and 66 to maintain the valve stem aligned with the tubular arms 32 and 32a. Valves II are secured to the ends of both valve stems 65 and 65 and engage with the valve seats 10 through annular rubber members 12 which are carried on the upper surfaces of the valves II. The valves 'H are normally retained in closed position, i. e. seated on the valve seats III, by means of springs 13 which are compressed between the lower ends of the buttons 63 and 64, and metallic washers-14 carried on the valve stems 65 and 66 and seated on rubber grommets l5 which in turn seat upon flanges 15 formed in the bores 43 and 44 at the upper ends thereof. Hence the valves H can be moved to open position by pressing the buttons downwardly and compressing the springs 13 which permits passage of air from the chambers 45 and 46 through their associated bores 43 and 44 to either the nozzle 5| or the nozzle 62, depending upon which valve is depressed. Caps 11 may be threaded into the lower ends of the valve 3| to close the lower ends of the tubes 32.

Air is exhausted from the casing head through the opening l2 therein, which may be provided with a removable closure plate 18 that is flush with the exterior surface of the casing I0. However, the opening |2 is positioned inwardly of the outer surface of the casing and connects to an outlet passage 19 that in turn connects to an exhaust pipe 8| exhausting to the atmosphere through a porous fabric bag 42. Before air can be-exhausted from the casing ii, any abrasives carried thereby should be removed. To this end, a cylindrical screen 05 is provided for the opening [2, which screen is held in place by the closure 18. Obviously appreciable pressure is built up in the casing II when air is forced therein, whereby the screen I! must be adapted to stand such pressure without collapse. A cylindrical member has been proven satisfactory,- whereas other types or shapes of screen do not function properly. Sand stuck to the outer surface of the. screen 85 is removed therefrom by blowing air against the inner surface of the screen by means of a fishtail air jet pipe 84. This pipe 84 connects to a conduit 85 which in turn engages with a fitting as carried by the valve body Ma. The fitting 86 connects to the bore 44 through a substantially horizontally disposed conduit 81 formed in the valve body, so that when the valve button 54 is depressed air is blown against the inner end of the spark plug 23 through nozzle 02 and onto the screen 83 through the. pipe 84. Sand laden air obviously will be blown against any object such as a sparkplug 23 positioned in the hole 2| inthe rubber washer 19 only when the valve button 63 is depressed. Hence in operation, the button 64 may be depressed first to remove loose particles from a spark plug positioned in the rubber washer after which the button 63 is pushed to cause a stream of abrasive to be blown against the exposed end of the spark plug which is then cleaned off by pushing the button 64 again. The rubber washer I! should be adapted to retain a spark plug in the hole 2| while it is being cleaned.

An additional function of the boss 21, when hole therein, an apertured rubber washer secured to said casing to cover the hole therein and to support a spark plug to be cleaned, cover means hinged on said casing and adapted to expose and cover said rubber washer, said cover means having a boss extending inwardly therefrom with relation to said casing, said boss engaging with the aperture in said rubber washer to secure said cover means in closed position upon said casing, abrasive particles loosely received within said casing, air supply means for feeding compressed air to said casing, a rubber coated aspirator tube connected to said air supp y means for picking up said abrasive particles and directing them against said spark plug supporting washhole therein, an apertured rubber washer secured to said casing to cover the hole therein, cover means hinged on said casing and adapted to expose and cover said rubber washer, said cover means having a boss extending inwardly therefrom with relation to said casing, said boss engaging with the aperture in said rubber washer to secure said cover means in closed position upon said casing, abrasive particles received within said casing, air supply means for feeding com- 10 pressed air to said casing, and a metallic aspirator tube connected to said air supply means for suctionally picking up said abrasive particles and directing them against said rubber washer, said aspiratcr tube being provided with a rubber coating to prevent said abrasive particles from wearing away said aspirator tube.

FRANK F. AKE.

RAYMOND W. ALLEN.

HENRY L. HOKE. 

